প্রকাশ: 09/05/2022
Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi on Monday said the dealers and
retail businesses betrayed him by increasing the price of edible oil during the
month of Ramadan.
“I had made a mistake by urging them to keep the prices of
edible oil at a tolerant level during the Ramadan. They (dealers and retailers)
did not keep my words. I was wrong,” he said.
He was speaking at a press conference on the market
management of the edible oil at his office on Monday.
Admitting his ministry’s failure to control the price hike
of this daily cooking ingredient, Tipu said, “It’s our failure. We had asked
them not to increase the prices of edible oil. But they did not follow our
instructions during the seven days of the Eid celebration. We have directed all
organisations concerned to keep the oil prices at a level fixed by the
government.”
About the syndicate over edible oil, the minister said he
didn’t find its existence.
Blaming the retailers and dealers, Tipu said there is no
chance of syndication of lakhs of dealers across the country.
“The government has withdrawn 10 per cent VAT on edible oil
on March 20 as per our request. The price of soybean oil was reduced to Tk 10
at that time. We have taken weekly information from big companies. Problem was
created as retailers and dealers knew that oil prices will be fixed after
Ramadan.
Many businessmen hoarded edible oil before Eid. That was the
fraud.”
The commerce minister also mentioned that edible oil has
also been increased at Tk 10-12 in neighboring India.
Expressing his firm commitment to monitoring the edible oil
market regularly, he said, the government will not put pressure on the
businesses though. He, however, assured punitive action will be taken against
the hoarders.
Tipu said his ministry will provide one crore daily
commodities from next June through the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh
(TCB).
At the press meet, City Group Chairman Fazlur Rahman said he
will extend all kinds of cooperation to the government to keep the prices of
edible oil stable.
- UNB
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